September 9, 2019:
Captain Morgan said the switch for the fall bite has flipped. Schools of menhaden have piled into some local tidal rivers bringing harbor blues in with them; blitz action was non-stop at times - "almost to the point of being wiped out" said one angler. Striped bass were hard to come by there, but moving away from visible action brought bass—20 pounds and better—taking topwater plugs with abandon. Meanwhile in the bays, 40-plus-inch fish were taking live eels in shallow water. The scup bite is intense, snapper blues are more consistent, hickory shad are running in several lower tidal rivers, sea robins are feeding on the bottom along with sand sharks. Black sea bass are scattered through the Sound with 4- and 5-pounders remaining in deep water while fluke to 26 inches are being caught in calmer water when drifting with squid and spearing. Weakfish keep coming and the blue crab bite remains solid. Weather-permitting, get ready for some of the best fishing yet. Don't forget about the Veteran's Memorial Blackfish Tourney which begins October 12th and runs through Halloween—there will be great prizes, a big raffle, a cool t-shirt and a big buffet put on by Guilford's VFW. Tickets are $40 and will be available at the shop along with the VFW. Call the shop for details.

Previous Reports

Captain Morgan said scup fever continues with multiple 'hubcaps' in excess of 15 inches stacking on the humps. Several of those are being caught from shore where bottom structure is prevalent. Out around Six Mile to Faulkners the weakfish bite has cranked up; fish over 20 inches are being hooked using squid, sea worms and jigs while drifting or trolling. Fishers looking for bigger stripers are still waiting for the switch to flip although, the night bite is picking up. Chunks, jigs and umbrellas have been giving up better results lately. Black sea bass have the fall hunger pang even taking eels meant for linesiders. There are plenty of small ones near shore and a few in the 4-pound class are being caught in deep water. Fly rod action and spoons are nailing small bluefish that are preying on huge schools of bunker - larger ones east or west. Don't be surprised if you hook into a Spanish or chub mackerel. The bonito bite continues along with limited albie action in the Sound. Flukers are hooking up with 23- to 26-inch fish more often as more snappers move in. White perch and hickory shad action is getting better while blue crabbing is still quite good. There is a noticeable appearance of smaller bottom fish since the spawn, especially in dogfish and sea robins with more adult (good eating) northern kingfish being caught. Finally, by popular request Captain Morgan's will host one more day of 'Fly Casting On The Flats' in Long Island Sound with world-traveled, skilled and experienced certified Fly Fishing International instructors. Cost $225: Saturday, September 14th, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. includes lunch and beverage. Stop in or contact the shop at 203-245-8665. Space is limited—ONLY TWO SPOTS LEFT!

Captain Morgan said more bluefish have moved into the Sound although most seem to be on the smaller side. Snappers are hot and heavy and have been best on a flooding tide taking shiners, poppers and small spoons. The striped bass bite has picked up on the reefs and in along the beaches, now that the water temps have dipped a few degrees. Peanut and adult bunker are in many of the harbors and near shore providing a good feed to both blues and bass. The fluke bite also spiked with fish in the mid 20-inch range being caught as they feed on snappers, spearing and squid. Fishing deep water with large bait is still producing doormats in 100-plus feet. Look for more weakies at Six Mile and Faulkners. Scup fever is ongoing as porgy pounders continue to score good catches. There are plenty of short black sea bass in close but going deep can land you a real humpback. Bonito are quite active but, albies are still taking their time. The bottom fishery including sand sharks, sea robins, kingfish, etc... continues to provide action while the tidal rivers are seeing hickory shad and good blue crabbing. Last day for blackfish is August 31st until it reopens on October 10th. Finally, by popular request Captain Morgan's will host one more day of 'Fly Casting On The Flats' in Long Island Sound with world-traveled, skilled and experienced certified Fly Fishing International instructors. Cost $225: Saturday, September 14, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. includes lunch and beverage. Stop in or contact the shop at 203-245-8665. Space is limited.

Captain Morgan said small bluefish are feeding along with a few chopper-wanna-be's as the peanut bunker show up. Topwater has improved, but spoons and chunks are taking the majority of the fish. The first pufferfish have surfaced giving fishers pause to consider northern kings and other bottom fish. Schoolie bass to 26 inches are being caught with bait and artificials, these speedy smaller bass seem to be out-pacing the larger class of fish. However, those throwing live eels, diamond jigs and bucktails during low light conditions have been scoring with the bigger bass this week. There's been better fluking inshore this week whenever the snappers have been around. Doormats though, are still out in the 100-foot depths. Deep water has also been the ticket the black sea bass, especially if you're looking for those north of the 4-pound mark. The closer you get to shore, the smaller they'll get. Weakies continue to be caught running south of Faulkner's while Six Mile has been giving up more of a variety of fish. Bonito catches are spotty and as of this report, and we're still waiting on the albies. A few good togs are being pulled from the shoreline as scup are really giving the 'porgy-bangers' something to talk about in spite of the sandworm shortage. Looks like blue crabbing is holding on with more of a mixed-bag being caught in the lower tidal rivers. Finally, by popular request Captain Morgan's will host one more day of 'Fly Casting On The Flats' in Long Island Sound with world-traveled, skilled and experienced certified Fly Fishing International instructors. Cost $225: Saturday, September 14th, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. includes lunch and beverage. Stop in or contact the shop at 203-245-8665. Space is limited.

Captain Morgan said more schools of Atlantic menhaden showed this week along with schools of 'average' bluefish for this time of year. Surprisingly, the topwater action is not up to par. Chunk baits, diamond jigs and umbrella rigs are scoring hits. The snappers are in and the high tide crowds are gathering along the beaches and harbors. Fluke catches are better and as in the black sea bass fishery, good fish are found in deep water. In both cases, smaller fish are being caught inshore although with the snapper blues in, some bigger fluke are taking the bait. Local togs are being caught, porgies are 'red hot', sea robins are cleaning the bottom and also chasing bait and lures to the top. Our resident sharks are feeding heavily with a few visitors popping in to say, 'hello'. The inshore bonito bite is ongoing with a wait-and-see approach to the albies. Weakie catches continue while tidal river blue crabbing catches remain good. Striped bass are being finicky but, schoolies are taking lures, bait and flies. Fishing end of the day tides on the reefs with live eels is paying off although, nice catches have been occurring in the bays during low light. Alas, there will be new striped bass coast-wide regulations for 2020 to address overfishing pending Addendum VI. Finally, by popular request Captain Morgan's will host one more day of 'Fly Casting On The Flats' in Long Island Sound with world-traveled, skilled and experienced certified Fly Fishing International instructors. Cost $225: Saturday, September 14th, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. includes lunch and beverage. Stop in or contact the shop at 203-245-8665. Space is limited.